In a real game with something on the line, you would have to take the East here. First of all if Iverson and Melo cant play enough defense to beat regular teams, how exactly are they gonna stop a team with Jason Kidd distributing the ball to LBJ, Wade, and KG? Get real.

Plus the East roster would have much better chemistry. Kidd + LBJ is madness, not to mention Howard can play down low while KG can space the court with his midrange game. Wade wouldnt really even do much, in fact that team would be better off with a shooter like Ray Allen or Turkoglu or even Billups at the 2.

The West would frankly be a joke with Iverson, Kobe, and Melo fighting over who gets to take the bad shot. Yao and Duncan would probably walk off the court and the other three wouldnt even notice as they're each trying to pry the ball out of the other's hands.

the east would be awsome on the fast break with kidd at the point....i mean look at the lineup how athletic is that.......yao and duncan would get smoke by KG and howard......so i would take the east....

Secondly, how about we try to create the best TEAMS instead of the best collections of individual talent? Sound slightly smarter? Anyone?

I won't bother filling out an entire roster, but here are the starting lineups I use...

Steve Nash
Kobe Bryant
Shawn Marion
Dirk Nowitzki
Tim Duncan

vs

Chauncey Billups
Ray Allen
LeBron James
Kevin Garnett
Dwight Howard

This is just a spare of the moment type thing, and there are definitely a few spots I am unsure about. I'll start with the west, where I'm only unsure about one position, the PF spot. Dirk... eh. The guy I'd LOVE to have there is Udonis Haslem, and I wouldn't hesitate to put him there. Post defense, rebounding, hustle, and an outside jumper. What's the Western Conference equivalent to Haslem? I can't think of anyone of the top of my head, so I went with Dirk instead. Ridiculous floor spacer for Timmy, and he isn't a horrible rebounder/defender. Yao/Timmy is an absolute no-no. Just no point in having them both.

The east has me unsure about the two guard spots. Namely because of what they would have to do on defense. Chauncey is a great defensive PG, but I just don't know if he's still quick enough to stay with a guy like Nash. The other option is obviously Hinrich, but I like Billups outside shooting more. I'll stick with him. Then there's Ray. He could definitely struggle mightily having to guard one of Kobe or Marion. Eh, I dunno, he's another insanely talented shooter who spaces the floor and can do other things as well. Meh.

So who you got out of those two? I'll take the West, they're a more well rounded offensive/defensive team I think. Although I still want to replace Dirk with someone, I just can't think of... who. Any ideas?

Oh yeah, I also wanted to comment on how ridiculous those choosing the East (from the teams the OP named) sound. Have we not learned anything from international play? I realize it's a different game, but c'mon, Kidd/Wade/LeBron? Are you kidding me? I mean, if you want to keep two guys in the starting lineup who're the exact same player (LeBron and Wade), at least replace the ball-dominant PG you have in there with a more reliable outside shooter. Geez.

the east would be awsome on the fast break with kidd at the point....i mean look at the lineup how athletic is that.......yao and duncan would get smoke by KG and howard......so i would take the east....